Predicting the US Open Winner

It’s not easy to handicap the entire US Open, especially when half of the players who came through the course ended up qualifying. However, with the few clues that we have, we have been able to make a decent effort at predicting the US Open winner. There’s a lot of surprises and wildcards in play of course, so it’s still anyone’s game and nobody is counting out any of the underdogs. So let’s get down to predicting the US open winner, here’s our top 14 picks.

Our US Open Picks

First off, Jordan Spieth. He’s incredibly knowledgeable about the sport, so much so that he’s won the Masters tournament, and he’s continued to up his game ever since then. He has no problems with wind condition and doesn’t complain about links golf as you’ll hear a lot of other players do. The US Open is being held at Chambers Bay where Jordan used to caddie, and knows the entire property inside and out better than most of his competitors. With his combination of an amazing game and the knowledge of the course, we think he has what it takes to take the big win.

Next on our list is Rickie Fowler. Hopefully you’ve seen his huge finish at the Irish Open a while back, and if you haven’t I’d highly recommend finding a video. It’s one of the most challenging courses out there and Fowler just absolutely wrecked it, which makes us think that Chambers Bay is going to be a total walk in the park for him. He loves the wind and challenging conditions, which is partials thanks to his upbringing in his golfing career. He’s a few off-games, but we all have, and we’re definitely not counting him out of the running for a US Open win.

Don’t let his recent second-place finishes fool you, another name we’re not counting out when predicting the US Open winner is Phil Mickelson. He’s always been known for the huge amounts of preparation he does and puts a lot of energy and time into it. As long as the weather holds out for him, he’ll definitely be viable to win, and he’s shown that he’s capable of playing a stunning game as he proved in the 2013 Opens. There’s no doubt in our minds he won’t be able to conquer Chambers Bay and we think that recently he’s become one of our top 5 golf players in the game.

Our 4th spot goes to Patrick Reed. He’s already said in a few interviews how much he enjoys playing at Chambers Bay, completely comfortable with the huge amount of obstacles around the course that make it so incredibly technical. He’s always finished his games with shots of 68 and 77 in previous US Amateur tournaments. He’s got great determination and a great game, and none of the other players should get too comfortable around him. He could make a major breakthrough at any time and sneak the win right out from under the other players’ noses.

Number 5 is Jim Furyk. He’s always incredibly consistent with his game, which is absolutely top notch. He’s already one Open and he’s been itching for a second win, and he has the advantage of experience that a lot of the other guys don’t. The only thing that we call into question is his endurance, he’s not exactly young anymore and neither is his caddy Fluff. Other than that, we definitely believe he has what it takes to win.

The next prediction for the US Open winner is a tie between Rory McIlroy and Bubba Watson. They both excel at the type of golf that needs to be played to win the Open and Chambers Bay might be the place to prove how great they are at links. McIlroy even won the 2014 Open, so he’s proven before he has what it takes.

Number 7 is Adam Scott. He’s an incredibly creative golfer and though he’s had a few struggles and off games, this is the exact type of course he would really excel on. He’s got a huge amount of power behind his club and Steve Willams at his bag, and looking for the big win.

Next is Justin Rose, who won Merion in 2013 and has been a runner-up at several other games. He’s got a lot of patience and consistency, and that should prove incredibly useful to him at Chambers Bay. It might just be what it takes to bring him from above-average player to Open winner.

Spot number 9 goes to Ryan Moore, who is a local to the Chambers Bay area. He’s always come just shy of a top spot at many tournaments and we expect to see him as one of the top, and if not maybe the possible winner this year.

Number 10 is Henrik Stenson, an extremely well-rounded player who has already had time to walk the course. Unfortunately he didn’t really get to do any scouting, but we’re still not counting him out. He’s always finished near the top, and the only thing that may keep him from winning might be a few attitude adjustments that need to be made.

Reaching the end of predicting the US Open winner now, this spot goes to Byeong-Hun An, who has a number of wins under his belt already and already had a few before age 18. He’s got the game and experience and we’re watching out for him at the Open, he might just surprise us with another.

Next is Morgan Hoffman, who made the cut at the Masters. He’s shown a great performance at the Open in previous years and we expect more of the same this year.

13th spot goes to Jamie Donaldson. He’s won the Irish Open in 2013 and really turns it out every time he plays, and we feel like he’s ready for his big break.

Last, but certainly not least is Bernd Wiesberger. He’s shown great performance in previous years and has come close to a few wins. Still an emerging player, but we’re not counting him out at all.